This invention relates generally to a method and system for tracking tickets, and more specifically to a method and system for tracking unused electronic tickets and for providing refunds for those tickets.
The number of tickets being issued for airline and other forms of travel is rapidly increasing. It is especially true that the number of electronic tickets and specifically electronic tickets for airline travel is increasing very rapidly. Many travelers, and especially frequent business travelers, find themselves in the position of scheduling many trips, changing itineraries, canceling or rescheduling trips, and otherwise creating a complex history of travel scheduling and rescheduling. It is not unusual in the midst of this hectic travel history to lose track of or to forget unused tickets. The problem of forgetting about unused tickets is exacerbated by the growing use of electronic tickets, since, with the electronic ticket, the traveler may have no paper record to remain him or her that a ticket ever existed.
Unused and forgotten tickets expire after some prescribed period of time. If forgotten and unclaimed after expiration, the money paid for the ticket is usually kept by the airline. A frequent traveler or a business that employs one or more travelers can sustain a significant financial loss if a number of unused but paid for tickets expire and are not refunded.
In the past there has been no efficient way to track unused tickets and to provide a refund to the traveler or to the traveler's employer. Any systems that have been available have been substantially manual systems that are unreliable and have little ability to track past activity or to report on tickets actually refunded. Accordingly, a need existed for an automated system for identifying unused tickets that have not been refunded.